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Cotoneaster

Cotoneaster glaucophyllus · Rosaceae
6m
Mature height
11
Councils: no permit needed
0
Councils: exempt under a height limit
9
Councils: permit required
Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster glaucophyllus) growing in Sydney
Cotoneaster · typical mature form

Do you need a permit?

Cotoneaster is exempt in some councils and protected in others, and several exemptions carry a height limit. Check the table below against the council for your address before assuming a permit is not needed.

How to identify it

A large arching shrub or small tree with small grey green leaves, clusters of white flowers in spring and masses of orange red berries through autumn and winter that persist for months.

Where it grows in Sydney

Naturalised through bushland edges, creek lines and back fences across the North Shore, Northern Beaches, Hornsby Shire and Inner West.

Common problems

  • Environmental weed spread widely by birds
  • Forms dense thickets along bushland edges
  • Berries attract and sustain feral bird populations
  • Regrows readily from cut stumps

What removal involves

Exempt in most councils covered here and usually below the size at which permits apply anyway. Typically a clearing and stump treatment job rather than climbing work.

Council permit rules, council by council

Status below is for a tree on private land that has passed the council’s size threshold. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas, significant tree registers, biodiversity mapping and conditions of development consent override every exemption shown here.

Council
Status
What it means
Northern Beaches
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Ku-ring-gai
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Hornsby Shire
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
The Hills Shire
Confirm with Council
Council holds its species exemptions in a document rather than on its website, so confirm this species with Council before treating removal as exempt. Size thresholds apply in the meantime. Official rules
Blacktown City
Permit required
Council does not run a species exemption list. A permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold, and each tree is assessed on its own merits. Official rules
North Sydney
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Willoughby
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Lane Cove
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
City of Ryde
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Hunters Hill
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
City of Sydney
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Inner West
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Woollahra
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Waverley
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Randwick
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Bayside
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Georges River
No permit needed
On Council's exempt species list, so no permit is required for removal. Heritage items, heritage conservation areas and significant tree register listings still override the exemption. Official rules
Strathfield
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules
Burwood
Confirm with Council
Council holds its species exemptions in a document rather than on its website, so confirm this species with Council before treating removal as exempt. Size thresholds apply in the meantime. Official rules
Canterbury-Bankstown
Permit required
Not on Council's exempt species list, so a tree permit is required once the tree passes the size threshold. Official rules

Frequently asked questions

Is Cotoneaster big enough to need a permit anyway?

Often not. Several councils only capture trees over 3m or 4m, and Cotoneaster frequently sits below that. Where it does exceed the threshold it is exempt by species in most councils on this list.

Commonly confused with

African Olive
Cotoneaster carries masses of orange red berries, African Olive small purple black fruit

Related species

African Olive (Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata) growing in Sydney
African Olive
Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata
Oleander (Nerium oleander) growing in Sydney
Oleander
Nerium oleander
Athel Tree (Tamarix aphylla) growing in Sydney
Athel Tree
Tamarix aphylla
Bamboo (Bambusa and Phyllostachys species) growing in Sydney
Bamboo
Bambusa and Phyllostachys species

Important note on council rules

This encyclopedia is a practical guide for Sydney property owners, not legal advice. Council tree rules change, and exemptions are frequently overridden by heritage listings, heritage conservation areas, significant tree registers, biodiversity mapping, endangered ecological communities and conditions attached to development consent. Always confirm the current rules with your council for your specific address before any tree work begins, or ask us to check it for you.
Photo by Rjcastillo via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0

Quick facts

Botanical name
Cotoneaster glaucophyllus
Also known as
Cotoneaster species
Family
Rosaceae
Origin
China
Mature height
3m to 6m
Canopy spread
3m to 5m
Growth rate
Fast
Foliage
Evergreen, small, grey green
Typical lifespan
40 years plus
Root habit
Shallow and dense
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